This unit on short stories went very well. Students enjoyed all of the short stories which we read as a class and many were eager to read aloud each day. One issue came at the end with the final project. Many students chose the third option of creating a Facebook page (using a template on Microsoft Word - Facebook template.pdf) for a character from one of the stories we had read. However, many did not look at the rubric closely, despite going over it in class together, and so received lower marks than they were capable of. In the future, I will show the class an exemplar so that they have a better idea of how to complete the project.
This creative writing unit allowed students to use their imaginations and write unique and interesting stories. While I provided themes for them to choose from, they were free to create their own characters, settings, and plots. While some students struggled to get words on paper, they all felt a great sense of accomplishment at having completed their very own short story.
The above story was written by one of my grade 7 students at Nashwaaksis Middle School. This was, by far, the most well-written, logical story that any of my nearly 100 students wrote. I chose to include this in my webfolio because it demonstrates excellence at the grade 7 level.
The above story was written by a struggling student in grade 7 at NMS. This student rarely, if ever, completed assignments in any of his classes. However, when I introduced the project of writing short stories he got very excited, went home, and wrote most of this story in one night. While the conventions such as spelling, grammar, and paragraphs need work, I was amazed at the interesting characters and plot line and the fact that this student actually completed a full story without constant help and attention from the teacher, which is what he usually needs to complete his work.
This unit plan was created by myself along with three other Education students at St Thomas University. We created this unit plan for a Secondary English Methods class. All four of us felt that this is a comprehensive, well-thought-out unit plan that could also be used in grade 11 in conjunction with the World War II unit in Modern European History. While I have never had the chance to actually teach this unit plan, I would love to be able to.
This is a mini-lesson [15 minutes] on the origins of the Islamic religion that I did with a grade 10 class at Fredericton High School. Myself, the two team teachers, and another student intern each did a 15-minute mini-lesson during one class period. I chose to teach this topic because I find that many students are completely unaware of what it means to be Muslim and they have no idea about the origins of Islam. Most students did not know who Muhammad was or that the Islamic holy book is called the Qu'ran. Even though this was a very short lesson, it was very informative and effective.
During my internship at FHS I taught several lessons on both World War I and World War II. This lesson fell in between those two units. We discussed new political ideologies that arose in Europe between the two World Wars. Most students found this topic engaging and interesting. I have included my lesson plan, a handout which I gave to students so that they could spend less time copying notes and more time listening and asking questions, and a quiz which I gave during the next class as a formative assessment to see if students were understanding these new concepts. The quiz allowed me to see who was catching on and who wasn't. It was interesting because I taught two grade 11 classes and one class understood very quickly while the other needed an extra class to fully understand Communism and Fascism.
In grade 122 Canadian History I wanted to come up with a fun project that would help students to learn about Canada in the 1920s. I chose the groups at random and then the groups picked numbers from a hat in order to determine who got to pick their topic first, as only one group could do each topic. The students set up their projects in the classroom as a sort of 1920s street fair, complete with music and snacks. A grade 9 class from the school came to view the projects as well. The students really enjoyed this project and the results were wonderful.
Short Stories
This unit on short stories went very well. Students enjoyed all of the short stories which we read as a class and many were eager to read aloud each day. One issue came at the end with the final project. Many students chose the third option of creating a Facebook page (using a template on Microsoft Word - Facebook template.pdf) for a character from one of the stories we had read. However, many did not look at the rubric closely, despite going over it in class together, and so received lower marks than they were capable of. In the future, I will show the class an exemplar so that they have a better idea of how to complete the project.
Creative Writing
This creative writing unit allowed students to use their imaginations and write unique and interesting stories. While I provided themes for them to choose from, they were free to create their own characters, settings, and plots. While some students struggled to get words on paper, they all felt a great sense of accomplishment at having completed their very own short story.
The above story was written by one of my grade 7 students at Nashwaaksis Middle School. This was, by far, the most well-written, logical story that any of my nearly 100 students wrote. I chose to include this in my webfolio because it demonstrates excellence at the grade 7 level.
The above story was written by a struggling student in grade 7 at NMS. This student rarely, if ever, completed assignments in any of his classes. However, when I introduced the project of writing short stories he got very excited, went home, and wrote most of this story in one night. While the conventions such as spelling, grammar, and paragraphs need work, I was amazed at the interesting characters and plot line and the fact that this student actually completed a full story without constant help and attention from the teacher, which is what he usually needs to complete his work.
Grade 9 English
This unit plan was created by myself along with three other Education students at St Thomas University. We created this unit plan for a Secondary English Methods class. All four of us felt that this is a comprehensive, well-thought-out unit plan that could also be used in grade 11 in conjunction with the World War II unit in Modern European History. While I have never had the chance to actually teach this unit plan, I would love to be able to.
Grade 10 Ancient and Medieval History
This is a mini-lesson [15 minutes] on the origins of the Islamic religion that I did with a grade 10 class at Fredericton High School. Myself, the two team teachers, and another student intern each did a 15-minute mini-lesson during one class period. I chose to teach this topic because I find that many students are completely unaware of what it means to be Muslim and they have no idea about the origins of Islam. Most students did not know who Muhammad was or that the Islamic holy book is called the Qu'ran. Even though this was a very short lesson, it was very informative and effective.
Grade 112 Modern European History
During my internship at FHS I taught several lessons on both World War I and World War II. This lesson fell in between those two units. We discussed new political ideologies that arose in Europe between the two World Wars. Most students found this topic engaging and interesting. I have included my lesson plan, a handout which I gave to students so that they could spend less time copying notes and more time listening and asking questions, and a quiz which I gave during the next class as a formative assessment to see if students were understanding these new concepts. The quiz allowed me to see who was catching on and who wasn't. It was interesting because I taught two grade 11 classes and one class understood very quickly while the other needed an extra class to fully understand Communism and Fascism.
Grade 122 Canadian History
In grade 122 Canadian History I wanted to come up with a fun project that would help students to learn about Canada in the 1920s. I chose the groups at random and then the groups picked numbers from a hat in order to determine who got to pick their topic first, as only one group could do each topic. The students set up their projects in the classroom as a sort of 1920s street fair, complete with music and snacks. A grade 9 class from the school came to view the projects as well. The students really enjoyed this project and the results were wonderful.